German boss finding his feet with Reds

Newly appointed Adelaide United coach Marco Kurz says he is adjusting well to his new environment and has been impressed with what he has seen from his players.

The 48-year-old tactician arrives at the Club with a plethora of Bundesliga experience, having amassed almost 300 appearances in all competitions.

He has also coached several sides in both the second and first division in Germany, with his most successful spell occurring at FC Kaiserslautern, when he won promotion and then finished seventh in the 2010/11 Bundesliga season.

In his first official press conference at the Club, Kurz said his main priority over the next few days was getting to know his players, before discussing footballing tactics.

“I must learn the players, the players must learn to know me – that’s important,” he said.

“I have a very young and interested team in Adelaide.

“The first impressions are good and all players are playing with commitment and joy at training.

“What I say first is that we must work hard and work to prepare on all things.”

Kurz explained the type of manager he is and the coaching methods he employs to connect with his players.

“I think discipline and organisation is not only for German teams, I think it’s important for every sport,” he said.

“You need good organisation and discipline, but I think there’s a lot of new things for the players and they’re very interested and they give me a good feeling.

“I like to communicate with the players and will hear their meaning about a situation and what they think about football.

“I think both sides (such as) hard work and discipline (are crucial), but they must also have joy and fun and like to train.”

The Schalke defender admitted he had some knowledge about the Hyundai A-League, prior to joining Adelaide, but stated he will have a better understanding of the competition in due course.

“Not so much, but I have a little bit because Thomas Broich played in the A-League,”

“And I saw some matches before and I also played in 1860 Munich with Paul Agostino and Ned Zelic, so that’s the only information.

“When I watch a lot of games from the A-League then I’ll get a better feeling of the league.”

Kurz also revealed preparations have already begun ahead of the Reds’ Round of 32 Westfield FFA Cup clash against the Newcastle Jets in a few weeks’ time.

“I think we’re preparing for the FFA Cup at the moment,” Kurz said.

“The team is not complete, but we’ll work on our offence.

“When we play in the cup we’ll try to go to the next round and take it step-by-step.